Method and device for winding and attaching warp strips onto the drum of a cone sectional warping machine

ABSTRACT

When winding individual warp strip sections, the ends of the warp strips are fixed onto the surface of the same section at least at two adjacent warp strip sections. At each second warp strip section, a base element is attached to the warp strip, onto which the ends of the warp strip, by means of connecting elements mounted thereon, can be adhered. The time required for attaching the base elements is thus reduced.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This invention relates to a method and device for winding and attaching warp strips onto the drum of a cone sectional warping machine. These methods, and the devices required to perform them, prepare the ends of the individual warp strip sections in such a way, that after the conclusion of the warping process, they can be transferred as simply as possible onto the warp beam for the subsequent beaming process.

[0002] A comparable kind of method has for example already become known by the EP-A 659 914. As can be seen, the again detachable fixation of the strip-ends on the surface of the winding is associated with a certain expense. In addition to the expense of material for producing the connecting elements, the time involved is important because each completion of a warp strip section is associated with an interruption which delays the working process.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0003] Therefore it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of the kind referred to at the beginning, which enables savings of material and time without the beaming process being affected hereby in any way. This object is solved by a method as described below. Surprisingly, it turned out that the ends of the warp strip sections do not necessarily have to be fixed on the section they are allocated to. Depending on the warp strip width, the strip-ends of a first section and an adjacently arranged second section are attachable to the surface of the first section. Certainly at the end of the second section this requires a lateral displacement of the warp strip, where the end of the warp strip effects a helical final winding. However this does not affect the strength of the winding and the following operations in any way. But the advantage is that the number of attachment stations on the warp strip sections can be at least halved.

[0004] In particular, regarding material and time, this matters, if a two-dimensional base element is attached to the warp strip of the first section spaced from the strip-end in a distance of approximately one winding circumference and if the strip-ends of the first and the second section are jointly attached to the base element of the first section. Here, the base elements serve in an already well-known way as a support for the attachment of the ends of the warp strip. However, it is clear that the warping apparatus has to be stopped for the mounting of the base elements, so that by reducing the base elements, down time can be reduced, apart from the lower material's consumption for the base element.

[0005] It is particularly advantageous if the strip-ends and the respective connecting elements at the strip-ends of the first and second sections are attached in succession in the direction of the winding to the base element of the first section. In this way, the tensile forces of both strip-ends are separately transmitted for each strip to the base element. However, in certain cases it would also be conceivable to fix the strip-ends and the respective connecting elements of the strip-ends in a superposing way.

[0006] Advantageously, each base element is formed by two material segments which are connected with each other in such a way that they take up the yarns of the warp strip between each other without combining with them. In this way the warp strip section can be utilized more or less up to the last centimeter and the final winding circumference is not lost. This is of particular significance in the case of valuable yarns. The loose attachment of the base elements can be further improved, if the material segments between individual yarns or groups of individual yarns are connected with each other point-by-point, the individual yarns of the respective group of individual yarns, prior to being connected, are spread in the region of connection. The point-by-point connection ensures that the frictional forces are sufficiently strong, so that the base element cannot be shifted along the warp strip. Furthermore, the warp strip is positionally fixed in such a way, that the yarns cannot be shifted in an overlapping way.

[0007] Preferably, the connecting elements are formed by two material segments, which are connected with each other in such a way that they take up the yarns of the warp strip between each other and combine with them, and on the side facing the warping drum during winding, an adhesive segment is provided on the material segment. Advantageously, the material segments for the base elements and for the connecting elements are made of a weldable plastic material. The adhesive segment at the connecting elements can be stripped off from a tape, but, for example, it would be also possible to spray on an adhesive.

[0008] The connecting element at the strip-end of a section and the connecting element at the strip-start of a subsequent section are preferably formed by common material segments, which, after the connection, are divided along with the yarns. In this way, only a single connecting process is necessary in each case in order to form the ends and the beginnings of the warp strip sections.

[0009] Furthermore the method can be practiced by stripping off the material segments of the base elements as well as the material segments of the connecting elements at a warp strip treatment station from the same material segment supply, and by cutting in accordance with the warp strip width. This results in a substantial reduction of space requirements and simplifies the manipulation at the warp strip treatment station. In order to form the connecting elements at the warp strip treatment station, one or both of the material segments can be coated with adhesive by means of a connectable adhesive dispenser. Therefore material segments can be delivered with or without an adhesive layer, as desired.

[0010] With respect to the device, the object of the present invention is solved by the device described below. A control device ensures that the warp strip treatment station, the strip changing device, and the warp carriage perform matched operations, always to return against the end of a second warp strip section on the surface of a first warp strip section and to attach it there. At the warp strip treatment station, particularly considerable improvements can be achieved, when for the mounting of the connecting elements and the base elements a stripping device is provided, at which two material segments, having been combined with each other, can be stripped off in such a way that they cover the warp strip and enclose it between them. In order to form the connecting elements, an attachable adhesive dispenser is provided, from which the material segment facing the drum during winding can be coated with an adhesive portion in the course of stripping off from the stripping device.

[0011] The adhesive dispenser can comprise a roller clamp and a feeding arm via which an adhesive tape is feedable towards a surface of a material segment, the feeding arm being pivotable between a feeding position and a home position.

[0012] At the warp strip treatment station, there may also be a welding device for welding the material segments, the welding device comprising at least one spot welder terminal and at least one line welder terminal for the different treatment of the connecting elements and the base elements. Optionally, continuous welded seams which firmly integrate the yarns, and such weldings which only enclose the yarns with a certain friction, can be mounted thereby.

[0013] In order to place the spot welds, the welding device can comprise spreading means for spreading the yarns of the warp strip in order to expose the spot welding joints. Normally, the yarns of a warp strip lie as close to each other, so that without spreading, spot welding would not be possible in the intermediate region.

[0014] For producing the connecting elements, at least two parallel line welder terminals are arranged in order to form parallel welded seams, the material segments welded like this being separable between the welded seams by means of a cutting device. In certain cases, however a two-dimensional welding would be conceivable, which subsequently would be separated by means of the cutting device.

[0015] Preferably, there is also provided a pair of spot welder terminals, so that the both material segments can better be held together. Furthermore the line welder terminals and/or the spot welder terminals at the welding device run movably on bearings in such a way that they can be shifted between a welding position and a home position. Incidentally, the point-by-point welding of the material segments and the device used therewith could also be used in conventional warping plants, where the ends of the warp strip are fixed in a conventional way.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] In the accompanying drawings,

[0017]FIG. 1 is a sectional schematic of a warping apparatus embodying the invention,

[0018]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a base element,

[0019]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a connecting element,

[0020]FIG. 4 shows the attachment of the strip-end of a first warp strip section,

[0021]FIG. 5 shows the attachment of the strip-end of a second warp strip section,

[0022] FIGS. 6-9 show the operations for winding first and second warp strip sections in schematic diagrams,

[0023]FIG. 10 shows a stripping device at the warp strip treatment station, looking in the direction of the warp strip,

[0024]FIG. 11 shows a view of the welding device looking in the direction of the warp strip, and

[0025]FIG. 12 shows a sectional view of the welding device according to FIG. 11 looking in a direction transverse to the warp strip.

SUMMARY OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)

[0026] As shown in FIG. 1, a yarn sheet 36 is stripped off at a warping apparatus 3 from a bobbin creel, not shown in detail here, and is guided through a bar grate 20. All bars of the bar grate have been brought together upward in such a way that all yarns of the yarn sheet touch an upper carded bar 21 of a carded bar pair 21, 21′. The yarns are guided like this in a plane through the lease reeds 22, 22′, where they are merged to the width of the actual warp strip 1.

[0027] After the warping reed 23, the warp strip 1 first passes a warp strip treatment station 14 and then a strip changing device 18. There, the warp strip is deflected downwards by a deviation roller 25 in such a way, that it runs in the same direction as the direction of rotation of the winding 27. An equalizing roller 26, which can be pressed against the winding, ensures the correct density and a uniform winding assembly of the wound sections.

[0028] A warp carriage 17, which is guided on a carriage guide 24, can shift parallel to the axis of the warp strip, which is required at the cone sectional warping machine during winding. Also the warp strip treatment station 14 and the strip changing device 18 belong to this warp carriage. A driving motor 37 serves for the shifting of the warp carriage.

[0029] The shifting of the warp carriage as well as the operations at the treatment station 14 and at the strip changing device 18 can be effected by a common control device 19. The individual controlling steps are described in detail hereinafter.

[0030] A continuous warp strip 1 can be provided at the treatment station 14 both with a base element 9 and with a connecting element 7, 8 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. According to FIG. 2, a base element 9 consists of two two-dimensional material segments 10 and 11 made of a weldable material. The two material segments are connected to each other transversely to the flow of the warp strip 1 with parallel point welded seams 38, 38′. The single welding joints are thereby arranged between individual yarns and thus between groups of individual yarns. Furthermore, longitudinal welded seams 39, 39′ can be optionally arranged at the sides of the warp strip. The base element 9 has a width b which corresponds to the strip width of the both material segments 10, 11.

[0031]FIG. 3 shows a connecting element 7 at the strip-start 5 of a first warp strip la and a connecting element 8 at the strip-end 6 of a second warp strip 1 b. The two connecting elements 7 and 8 first consist of the same material segments 10 and 11 with a total width b corresponding to the base element 9. However, both material segments are connected to each other by parallel line welded seams 40, 40′, which also firmly enclose the single yarns of the warp strip. Longitudinal welded seams 39, 39′ are also provided here. Furthermore, an adhesive segment 13 is mounted on the material segment 10 between the two line welded seams 40, 40′. This adhesive may be a tape shaped adhesive without a carrier foil.

[0032] According to FIG. 3, a welded unit is separated intermittently with a suitable cutting device in such a way, that the connecting elements 7 and 8 are spaced a distance of b/2.

[0033] According to FIG. 4, a first warp strip section 4 a is first wound on a warping drum 2. The strip is provided with the strip-start 5 a containing the connecting element 7 a and with the strip-end 6 a containing the connecting element 8 a. The strip-start 5 a is directly fixed onto the warping drum 2. Shortly before the last winding, a base element 9 is fixed at the warp strip in a distance of one winding circumference. Subsequently, the last winding is performed and the strip-end 6 a is adhered at the connecting element 8 a on the base element 9.

[0034] Then, according to FIG. 5, in the immediate vicinity a second warp strip section 4 b is wound, whose strip-start 5 b has also been fixed before with the connecting element 7 b on the drum. At the warp strip of the second section 4 b, no base element has to be used. However, the end 6 b with the connecting element 8 b is fixed onto the base element 9 of the first section 4 a.

[0035] For a better understanding, this process is explained again with reference to FIGS. 6 to 9, each of which shows, on the left half of the illustration, the warping drum in the direction of the axis and on the right half of the illustration the warping drum in the direction transversely to the axis. The truncated cone area 28 corresponds to the cone inclination on the drum 2 or on the warp strip section which was wound last. At the warp strip treatment station 14, the position of both material segments is shown in each case in two sequences, which, however, in reality do not run one after another but in the same relative position.

[0036] As seen in FIG. 6, the warp strip 1 a, at the treatment station 14, is provided with a connecting element 7 a at the strip-start 5 a. With the strip changing device, which is not shown in detail, the connecting element 7 a is fixed onto the drum 2, immediately next to the cone area 28 of the preceding winding and next to the cone area of the drum. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 7, the warp strip section 4 a is wound with the warp strip 1 a.

[0037] In a distance of one winding circumference spaced from the strip-end, a base element 9 is then mounted at the warp strip 1 a. Subsequently, according to FIG. 8, the last rotation is performed in order to mount a further connecting element 8 a at the strip-end 6 a. This is first coupled with the connecting element 7 b at the beginning of the following warp strip 1 b and is separated by cutting.

[0038] While the strip-end 6 a of the first section 4 a is fixed onto the base element 9, the attachment of the strip-start of the following warp strip is again performed on the drum, immediately next to the first warp strip section which is already wound.

[0039] According to FIG. 9, the second section 4 b is wound in the same way as the first section 4 a, but without a base element 9 being attached here. At the strip-end 6 b of the second warp strip 1 b a connecting element 8 b is again attached after first being coupled with a further connecting element 7 c, and then is separated. However, the strip-end 6 b is not attached to the surface of the section 4 b, but rather to that of the first section 4 a, namely on the same base element 9 as the first attaching element 8 a. As can clearly be seen, the last rotation runs transverse to the normal circumference direction of the warp strips. As indicated in FIG. 9, the whole process now is repeated with further warp strip sections 4 c and 4 d being wound, whose ends are fixed on the surface of the warp strip section 4 c.

[0040] With the aid of FIG. 10, some more details are explained concerning the warp strip treatment station 14. At this station a stripping device 29 is arranged, at which two supply reels 15, 15′ of a weldable foil are stored. In this way, material segments 10 and 11 can be stripped off via different deflection rollers 42 and can be guided, respectively, over and under the warp strip 1 with its individual yarns 12. For this, a gripper is used, which is not shown here in detail, which each time grips and strips off the material segments, whereafter a separating cut is performed in parallel to the warp strip according to the width of the warp strip.

[0041] Also on a supply reel 16, an adhesive tape is stored in such a way that it can be supplied to the material segment 10. In this embodiment, this section faces the drum during winding. For applying the adhesive segment 13, a feeding arm 30 is used, which runs on pivotable bearings over a air-oil cylinder 31 in the direction of the arrow Y. For producing base elements, for which no adhesive layer is necessary, the feeding arm 30 is located in an upper home position, in which no adhesive tape is supplied. For producing the connecting elements, the feeding arm is lowered, so that the stripped material segment 10 also strips off the adhesive film, which at the same time lays itself down adheringly onto the surface. The separation of the adhesive film from the tape supply can be performed either by cutting or by tearing off.

[0042] The actual connection of the both material segments 10 and 11 is performed at the welding device 32 according to FIGS. 11 and 12. This welding device, of course, is also arranged adjacent to the stripping device 29. The welding device essentially consists of a pair of upper line welder terminals 34 and a pair of lower line welder terminals 34′. These welder terminal pairs can be moved against one another by activating devices, which are not shown here in detail, in such a way that they enclose the warp strip 1 and the respective material segments 10, 11 between them.

[0043] Over the lower line welder terminal pair 34′,there is arranged a spot welder terminal pair 33 in each case. The latter can be shifted to the inside between the lower line welder terminal pair 34′ in a symmetrical movement in the direction of the arrow x (FIG. 12), if no point welded seam is desired. To produce a point welded seam, a spread means terminal 41 is lowered to the warp strip 1, at which single spread cones 35 are arranged. The peaks of the spread cones are located in the vertical plane of the supposed point welded seams, so that the warp strip is spread at this position. This prevents single yarns from becoming welded in the course of producing the point welded seams.

[0044] The optional longitudinal welded seams 39, 39′, shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, can be produced by line welder terminals similar to the respective line welder terminal 34, 34′. The welding of foils is known to the person skilled in the art and is not described here in more detail. Instead of welder terminals which can be thermally heated up, of course also other welding methods or connecting methods are conceivable, as for example laser welding, ultrasonic sealing, etc. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of winding and attaching warp strips onto a drum of a cone sectional warping machine, at which several sections of warp strips are sequentially wound adjacent to a winding on the drum, said method comprising steps of providing the strip-start and the strip-end of each section with a two-dimensional connecting element connecting the individual yarns of the strip with each other, attaching the strip-starts of the sections onto the drum, attaching the strip-ends of the sections on the surface of the winding, and attaching the strip-ends of a first section and at least an adjacently arranged second section to the surface of the first section.
 2. A method according to claim 1, wherein a two-dimensional base element is attached to the warp strip of the first section spaced from the strip-end in a distance of approximately one winding circumference and that the strip-ends of the first and the second sections are commonly attached to the base element of the first section.
 3. A method according to claim 2, wherein the strip-ends and respective connecting elements at the strip-ends of the first and the second section are attached in succession in the direction of the winding onto the base element of the first section.
 4. A method according to claim 2, wherein each base element is formed by two material segments which are connected with each other in such a way that they take up the yarns of the warp strip between each other without combining with them.
 5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the material segments of the base elements between individual yarns or groups of individual yarns are connected with each other point-by-point, wherein said individual yarns and a respective group of individual yarns are spread in the region of connection prior to connecting.
 6. A method according to claim 1, wherein each connecting element is formed by two material segments, which are connected with each other in such a way, that they take up the yarns of the warp strip between each other and combine with them, wherein, on the side facing the warping drum during winding, an adhesive segment is provided on the material segment.
 7. A method according to claim 6, wherein the connecting element at the strip-end of a section and the connecting element at the strip-start of a subsequent section are formed by common material segments, which after the connection are divided along with the yarns.
 8. A method according to claim 6, wherein the material segments of the base elements as well as the material segments of the connecting elements at a warp strip treatment station are stripped off from the same material segment supplies and are divided in accordance with the warp strip width.
 9. A method according to claim 8, wherein at the warp strip treatment station one of the both material segments is coated with the adhesive segment from a connectable adhesive dispenser to form the connecting elements.
 10. A device for winding and attaching warp strips onto a drum of a cone sectional warping machine having a warp carriage which can be shifted parallel to an axis of the drum, a warp strip treatment station arranged on the carriage, at which station a two-dimensional connecting element can be mounted at the strip-start and at the strip-end of each warp strip section, a strip changing device connected to the warp carriage for attaching the strip-starts onto the drum and the strip-ends onto the surface of the winding, a control device for controlling the warp carriage and the strip changing device in such a way that, after winding a first warp strip section and attaching its strip-end onto the surface of the first section and after winding a second section lying next to the first section, the strip-end of the second section can be fed back to the surface of the first section and is attached thereto.
 11. A device according to claim 10, wherein a two-dimensional base element attachable at the warp strip treatment station to the warp strip of the first section spaced from the strip-end in a distance of approximately one winding circumference, the strip-end of the first section and the strip-end of the second section being commonly attachable to this base element.
 12. A device according to claim 11, further comprising a stripping device for mounting the connecting elements and the base elements on the warp strip treatment station, at which two material segments, having been combined with each other, can be stripped off in such a way that they cover and enclose the warp strip.
 13. A device according to claim 12, further comprising an adhesive dispenser for coating the material segment facing the drum during winding with an adhesive segment in the course of stripping off from the stripping device.
 14. A device according to claim 13, wherein the adhesive dispenser comprises a roller clamp and a feeding arm by means of which an adhesive tape is feedable towards the surface of a material segment, said feeding arm being pivotable between a feeding position and a home position.
 15. A device according to claim 12, further comprising a welding device arranged at the warp strip treatment station in order to weld the material segments, said welding device comprising at least one spot welder terminal and at least one line welder terminal for different treatment of the connecting elements and the base elements.
 16. A device according to claim 15, wherein the welding device comprises a spread means, by means of which the yarns of the warp strip can be spread in order to expose spot welding joints.
 17. A device according to claim 15, wherein, for producing the connecting elements, at least two parallel line welder terminals are arranged in order to form two parallel welded seams, whereby material segments thus welded can be separated between the welded seams by means of a cutting device.
 18. A device according to claim 15, wherein the line welder terminals and/or the spot welder terminals comprise a movable bearing and are shiftable between a welding position and a home position. 